Prior to her first scenes as the lead in ‘Doctor Who’, Jodie Whittaker is taking on the role of an actual doctor in new BBC One drama ‘Trust Me’, which starts on Tuesday (8 August).
Although, when we say she plays an actual doctor, Jodie’s character isn’t exactly all she seems.
That’s because she’s actually assumed the identity of her best friend, and sets about working in a hospital under her name. What could possibly go wrong?
As the four-part series makes its debut, here’s all we can tell you about it...
What is it about?
Caring and hardworking nurse Cath Hardacre does her best for everyone in the cardiology ward she works on, but when she raises her concerns about the standards slipping at the hospital, her world is turned on its head when she is sacked for whistle-blowing.
Not knowing what to do, Cath turns to her best friend Dr. Ally Sutton, who is leaving her life as an A&E doctor and emigrating to New Zealand with her new husband.
After getting drunk at a party, Cath finds some of Ally’s discarded paperwork and makes the snap decision to steal her pal’s identity.
Now calling herself Ally, Cath and her daughter move to Edinburgh, where she accepts a job at a failing emergency department using her fraudulent medical licence.
However, with her good-for-nothing ex-partner Karl trying to spend time with them. and a journalist chasing her about the issues at her former hospital, how will ‘Ally’ cope with leading a double life?
Who stars in it?
Jodie Whittaker as Cath Hardacre / ‘Dr Ally Sutton’
Nurse Cath Hardacre is described as “honest, hardworking and uncompromising”, but all that changes when she steals her best mate’s identity.
As Ally, she becomes a trusted member of the emergency department and against her better judgement, she falls for her colleague, Dr Andy Brenner.
Where have you seen Jodie before? Jodie is arguably best known for her role as Beth Latimer - the mother of murdered school boy Danny Latimer - in all three series of ‘Broadchurch’.
She’a also appeared in ‘Black Mirror’ and ‘Marshlands’, as well as big screen roles in ‘St. Trinian’s’ and ‘One Day’.
Of course, you’ve probably seen her in the headlines a lot of late, after it was announced she would be succeeding Peter Capaldi as the new lead in ‘Doctor Who’.
Emun Elliott as Dr. Andy Brenner
Andy is a consultant in the emergency department, a doctor whose professional and charming manner puts even the most nervous patient at ease.
After his wife walked out on him due to his commitment to his job, he is surprised when he finds himself falling for ‘Ally’.
Where have you seen Emun before? He played Dr. Christian King in the 2009 BBC drama ‘Paradox’, opposite Tamsin Outhwaite, as well as Richie in Comedy Central’s ‘Threesome’ and John Moray in 2012 period drama ‘The Paradise’.
He’s also had roles in ‘Monarch Of The Glen’ and BBC Three’s recent online series ‘Clique’, plus a small part in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’.
Sharon Small as Dr. Brigitte McAdams
Brigitte is the clinical lead in the emergency department of Cath’s new hospital.
Openly admitting that she is only in the profession to keep her daughters in private school, Brigitte has fallen out of love with treating patients, and lacks confidence when she must take care of a serious medical case.
Where have you seen Sharon before? Sharon has starred in many big name TV shows, but she’s probably best known for her role as Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers in ‘The Inspector Lynley Mysteries’.
She’s also starred in ‘Sunburn’ as Carol Simpson, ‘Mistresses’ as Trudi Malloy, and ‘Law & Order: UK’ as DI Elisabeth Flynn, as well as smaller roles in the likes of ‘New Tricks’, ‘Downton Abbey’, ‘Cutting It’ and ‘Death In Paradise’.
Blake Harrison as Karl
Karl is Cath’s ex-boyfriend, whose world came crashing down when he lost his job and spiralled into alcohol addiction. As a result, his relationship with Cath suffered and they separated shortly afterwards.
Cath’s move to Edinburgh pushes him to change his life for the better and be a good dad to their daughter Molly. But will he get the family reunion he is hoping for?
Where have you seen Blake before? You’ll probably know Blake better as Neil from the E4 sitcom ‘The Inbetweeners’, which later spawned two spin-off films.
He’s also appeared as Barney in ‘Him & Her’ and as DS Spencer Gibbs in ‘Prime Suspect 1973’, as well as playing Private Pike in the big-screen version of ‘Dad’s Army’.
Who wrote it?
‘Trust Me’ was created and written by Dan Sefton - the man behind ‘Good Karma Hospital’ and ‘Delicious’.
However, he says it is “very different” from ‘Good Karma Hospital’, explaining this show is “a psychological thriller in the Hitchcock tradition set in the NHS, not a ‘medical show’.”
Did the cast receive real medical training?
Kind of. Dan explained they spent a couple of days in training learning how to handle all the equipment “like how to wear a stethoscope around your neck like a ‘real’ doctor - and how possessive doctors are of their ’tubes’.”
“Everyone seemed to get into it - especially Jodie,” he said. “On set the patient transfers, equipment etc were real and the entire cast got really good at doing it all - so much so that they could probably now pass for real doctors and nurses! If you meet a doctor who looks like Jodie Whittaker then check her GMC certificate!”
Is there a trailer?
Yes, indeed there is. Get a preview of the drama ahead in the video below...